Spirit Week unites, excites campus

Spirit week is an annual tradition on campus that leads up to the Homecoming festivities.

Spirit Week kicked off to a strong start this year, holding two events on Monday, Feb. 26.

The first event gave students the opportunity to talk face-to-face with members of Associated Students Inc. during Apple Pie with ASI.

Students were able to go and eat free apple pie and ice cream with the members.

This was a great opportunity to ask elected student leaders questions they have and to find out how the members are serving the student body.

“Our plan with spirit week this year was to bring different facets of the school together in order to highlight the campus,” said second year business management and human resources student and ASI Secretary of Programs and Services, Chau Mai Hua. “We partnered up with different organizations and clubs so each can provide things to the event and also represent themselves and be prideful.”

The organizations ASI partnered with included Parking and Transportation Services, Dining Services and the Bronco Bookstore for various events and activities throughout the week.

ASI and these organizations collaborated on a raffle with some great prizes including a special VIP parking space and a Bronco Bookstore gift card.

The second event on Monday was the Sprit Week Kickoff that included a DJ playing music for students, a DIY project station, a screen printer making custom CPP t-shirts and a complementary Qdoba food station for students to enjoy.

“One of our goals this year was to make sure that everyone on campus was wearing as much green and gold as possible,” said ASI Assistant Secretary of Programs and Services, Michael Burckhardt. “We know not everyone can afford CPP clothing from the Bronco bookstore, so we wanted to create opportunities for students to make some for themselves.”

The Club Food Festival was held on Tuesday, Feb. 27 where campus clubs provided food for sale during U-hour.

The goal of the event was to support the clubs in raising funds while also celebrating being a Bronco in the campus community.

“Being mostly a commuter school has its drawbacks when it comes to bronco pride,” said Hua. “Most people go to class and go straight home when they’re finished for the day. Spirit Week helps students realize that we can all enjoy our college experience and find other people to enjoy it with.”

Workout Wednesday began on the morning of Feb. 28 at the Bronco Recreational and Intramural Complex (BRIC).

The event consisted of a few different group fitness classes and other activities such as miniature golf.

There were great opportunities to win different prizes like yoga mats.

ASI held this event to encourage healthy living both on and off of the campus.

They also wanted to encourage people to go to the BRIC if they had not yet.

Bronco Pride Day was held on Thursday, March 1.

The CPP Cheer Team led a march from University Quad to University Park, which was followed by a pep rally filled with live performances and a guest appearance from Billy Bronco.

The Broncettes gave a lively dance performance to a cheering crowd and the Pep Band also performed for the crowd of students, faculty and alumni.

The Broncettes Dance Team performs during the Homecoming pep rally. (Christina Berberian | The Poly Post)

“Although you see people wearing Cal Poly [Pomona] shirts around campus, events like these are an extra little thing to know that we are all here supporting each other and the school,” first-year English education student Rebecca De Voe said.

Bronco Madness was held on Friday, March 2.

Typically the Midnight Madness event is held on the last Friday of the quarter before Finals Week but ASI decided to include it in Spirit Week to encourage a higher attendance from students before they buckle down and focus on their studies prior to exams.

There were exciting activities to get students full of spirit, including a new addition to the festivities – roller-skating.

The event concluded with a fireworks show that lit up the sky all around the campus grounds.

ASI puts on Spirit Week prior to Homecoming to excite students and get them pumped for the annual event.

Homecoming is a favorite tradition at CPP where students, alumni and their families have opportunities to ride carnival rides, play games, interact with their peers and have some fun.

This year, the university brought in a Ferris wheel, tilt-a-whirl ride, bouncy house, carnival booths and a petting zoo for the afternoon.

Live music was played as guests ate from food trucks and some of the campus’ cultural center groups performed dances for the crowd.

Students wore wear green and gold to show pride at the two baseball games against UC San Diego.

The eventful day ended with the highly anticipated Homecoming Concert.

Students gathered around and danced, which was a great end to a spirited week.

Bronco Spirit Week will be held again next school year prior to the 2019 Homecoming event.